Social media millionaires

It isn’t only Justin Bieber who’s used YouTube as a platform to establish his sky-high celeb status, or Kendall Jenner who leveraged her social media following into a profitable modeling career. Read on to learn more about the more everyday people who are making millions from sharing photos and videos on social media platforms such as Instagram and YouTube.

Julia Engel: $1.5 million net worth

Model and fashion blogger Julia Engel has amassed over 1.1 million followers on her Instagram page. Like every fashionista worth her salt, Julia chronicles her trips to trendy destinations while showcasing catwalk-worthy looks and impeccable style. Engel makes money through brand partnerships, which she promotes on her accounts, and has even helped her photographer husband Thomas Berolzheimer boost his social media credentials and become a minor Instagram celeb in his own right.

Toy Genie: $1.5 million net worth

No-one knows who the creative minds behind Toy Genie are. Their wildly-popular YouTube channel features nothing but a pair of adult hands playing with new toys which have just launched, with a voiceover showing kids how to play. The channel has close to 3 million subscribers and shares two videos a day – so it’s a big operation which reportedly has made around $1.5 million.

Jane Aldridge: $1.5 million net worth

Texas native Jane Aldridge launched her blog and Instagram page, Sea of Shoes, ten years ago when she was just 15 years old. Today she gets 400,000 unique visitors on her site each month and has an Instagram following of 198,000 fans. For Jane to promote a brand on her Instagram, she’ll charge at least $5,000 and a public appearance will cost you north of $20,000, so it’s no wonder she’s worth a reported $1.5 million.

Brian DiFeo: $3 million net worth

Before Instagram, Brian DiFeo was just another amateur photographer, but as he started uploading his shots on the social media platform he started to attract attention. His personal photography site has over 100,000 followers, but DiFeo makes the bulk of his cash through Mobile Media Lab, an online marketing agency he founded in 2012 which helps connect brands with social media whizzes like himself.

Nash Grier: $3 million net worth

Nash Grier first made a name for himself on the video-sharing site Vine before moving to YouTube. He originally began making six-second videos to entertain his classmates. With 10.2 million Instagram followers, 4.78 million YouTube subscribers and 4.8 million Twitter followers, Grier has expanded his empire and now develops mobile game and social media apps. His estimated net worth sits at a comfortable $3 million.

Zoella: $4 million net worth

Fashion, beauty and make-up guru Zoella began making YouTube cosmetics review videos in her childhood bedroom. Now worth $4 million and with over 11 million followers on her Instagram handle, Zoella continues to build her social media empire with beauty, fashion and lifestyle videos, earning a reported $14,000 per Instagram post.

Cameron Dallas: $4.5 million net worth

Internet personality, actor and model Cameron Dallas moved his videos and fanbase over from Vine to his Instagram handle CameronDallas, where he now has a ripe following of 20.4 million fans. With a net worth of $4.5 million, the Calvin Klein model also runs a side-business, Magcon, a touring company that connects internet celebrities with their fans.

Huda Kattan: $4.5 million net worth

Huda Kattan of Huda Beauty is a Dubai-based beauty blogger, who has been on the social media scene since 2010. With a net worth of $4.5 million and 21.4 million Instagram followers, Huda has gone on to launch her own make-up line, which is now sold at Sephora stores around the world. The beauty blogger counts Kim Kardashian as one of her biggest fans.

Rhett and Link: $5 million net worth

Rhett and Link have been making waves on social media for years. Their YouTube comedy channel has broad appeal with the typically younger audience that uses it, despite the pair pushing 40. With over 4 million subscribers, the childhood buddies are currently worth $5 million. Not all that cash comes from their insanely popular YouTube channel as they also run a production company, a daily online talk show, and have a Mythical Crew that produces even more videos.

Colleen Ballinger: $5 million net worth

When Colleen Ballinger created comic character Miranda Sings as a joke, she had no idea she would become a YouTube sensation. With over seven million followers on YouTube and a net worth of $5 million, Colleen has expanded her empire by publishing a New York Times best-selling book titled Selp Helf and is currently in the middle of producing the second season of her Netflix original series, Haters Back Off.

German Garmendia: $5.5 million net worth

Latin America has its own YouTube sensation in the form of Chilean YouTube comedian German Garmendia, who currently boasts over 30 million subscribers to his YouTube channel HolaSoyGerman. With over two billion YouTube views, the Latino comic’s net worth is estimated at a sweet $5.5 million.

Markiplier: $5.5 million net worth

Mark Fischbach dropped out of college, where he was studying engineering, to pursue his digital dream of making it big on YouTube. Now a prominent Mark Fischbach, some might say his decision was risky, though with a current net worth of $5.5 million and over 15 million subscribers to his YouTube channel Markiplier, most will agree it was a risk well worth taking.

Rosanna Pansino: $6 million net worth

The adorable American YouTube baker has become quite the sensation, with over seven million subscribers to her channel Nerdy Nummies. With her geeky baked goods tutorials, Pansino now has the most popular baking channel on the platform. With a net worth of $6 million, over 2 billion YouTube channel views and a New York Times best-selling cookbook, the nerdy baker has come far since her 2011 debut.

Tyler Oakley: $6 million net worth

What started as a YouTube channel to keep his friends updated on his life at college has resulted in a very fruitful career for media mogul Tyler Oakley. With a net worth of $6 million and over eight million YouTube subscribers, Oakley is now a successful author, talk show presenter, documentary filmmaker and production company owner.

Lilly Singh: $7.5 million net worth

This Canadian-Indian YouTube personality has earned herself over 10 million subscribers. With a net worth of $7.5 million, she’s made it her personal mission to make the world a better place with her uplifting videos and impersonations of her parents. The comedian published her first book, How to Be a Bawse, in March 2017.

Ryan ToysReview: $12 million

The youngest self-made millionaire on the list, it’s unlikely this six-year-old YouTuber knows his own worth. With over nine million subscribers to his YouTube channel, young Ryan is making a mint. While most boys his age can count their pocket money in one hand, the adorable toy reviewer earns an impressive $1 million a month from advertising revenue alone.

Roman Atwood: $8 million net worth

The RomanAtwoodVlogs YouTube prankster has made a name for himself with his comic videos. With over 10 million subscribers to his channel, the digital star has gone on to star in feature film Natural Born Prankster, wtih a nice sideline in merchandise sales. With an estimated net worth of $8 million, he is currently working on a book titled Will Work for Smiles.

Chiara Ferragni: $12 million net worth

Chiara began her fashion blog The Blonde Salad in 2009. Little did she know that her blog would lead the influencer to establish her own luxury shoe business, where she sells shoes for up to $500 a pair. To date she’s earned an estimated $12 million.

Lindsey Stirling: $8 million net worth

Lindsey Stirling wasn’t expecting to become a social media millionaire when she uploaded her first video back in 2007. However, the road to success wasn’t an easy one for the dancing, singing and violin-playing star.

Growing up, Lindsey’s parents could only afford a 15-minute music lesson per week for the young star, but this didn’t stop her from chasing her dreams. As a quarter-finalist on America’s Got Talent back in 2010, Piers Morgan famously told her “You’re talented, but you’re not good enough.” With a net worth of $8 million and over nine million subscribers to her YouTube channel, boy was he wrong!

SMOSH: $11.8 million net worth

Smosh is Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox, a teenage duo who used YouTube as a channel to share their comic moments with the rest of the world. Not only have Smosh racked in over 11 billion views via their YouTube channel, the pair have gone on to appear in two feature films: Smosh: The Movie, released in 2015, and this year’s Ghostmates.

However, the YouTube stars recently announced they are breaking up. After a fruitful 11-year creative collaboration, Padilla has decided to pursue a solo career. The decision is believed to have been an amicable one.

Family Fun Pack: $15 million net worth

Kristine had no idea what the future held in store for her family when she uploaded a funny video of her kids to YouTube to share with her friends and family. The video instantly went viral, reaching over 70 million views since it was first uploaded, demonstrating the vast power of YouTube and social media.

The family chooses to remain private, never revealing their full names and moving home whenever their location is discovered by the media. Still, they continue to upload family-friendly viral videos to their YouTube channel, Family Fun Pack, making a lot of money for their efforts. With over five million followers and an estimated net worth of $15 million, this YouTube family makes an estimated $1 million per month in advertising revenue alone.